Name: ______________________________Class: _________________ Date: _________________
Principles of Evolution
Chapter Test A
Answer Key
Multiple Choice
1. b
2. c
3. a
4. b
5. a
6. c
7. c
8. d
9. a
10. c
11. b
12. a
13. d
14. c
15. a
Short Answer
16. homologous structures
17. Structure A is a human arm, which is used
for lifting and carrying items. Structure B is
the fin of a whale and is used for swimming.
Structure C is the wing of a bat and is used
for flying.
18. They share a common ancestor.
19. the wing of a flying insect
20. The three forelimbs are adapted for different
functions, but they are formed from similar
bones. All three forelimbs have a similar
structure. This indicates that the organisms
share a common ancestor.
21. the lamprey
22. the Rhesus monkey
23. After the lamprey, the frog’s hemoglobin
shares the fewest amino acids with that
of humans.
24. The Rhesus monkey and humans have the
most similar amino acids in the hemoglobin
protein. This shows that they share a more
recent common ancestor than the other
organisms do.
25. Humans and lampreys; this is because they
have the greatest difference in the amino
acids of the hemoglobin protein.
Copyright by McDougal Littell, a division of Houghton Mifflin Company
Biology
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Principles of Evolution
Name:______________________________ Class: __________________ Date: __________________
Principles of Evolution
Chapter Test A
MULTIPLE CHOICE
Choose the letter of the best answer. (15 credits)
_____ 1. What is the term for a
feature that allows an
organism to survive better
in its environment?
a. variation
b. adaptation
c. homologous structure
d. vestigial structure
_____ 5. Which scientist developed a
classification system for
organisms?
a. Carolus Linnaeus
b. Charles Darwin
c. Jean-Baptiste Lamarck
d. Georges L.L. de Buffon
______
_____ 2. All the individuals of a
species that live in a
particular area are called a
a. variation.
b. fossil.
c. population.
d. group.
6. The tortoise from Abingdon
Island, shown in Figure 10.1,
would likely be better
adapted than the Albermarle
Island tortoise to which of
the following environments?
_____ 3. The remnant of an organ
that had a function in an
early ancestor is known
as a(n)
a. vestigial structure.
b. analogous structure.
c. homologous structure.
d. fossil structure.
_____ 4. What observations did
Charles Darwin make about
finches in the Galápagos
Islands?
a. The same species of finches
lived on all the islands.
b. Different species of
finches lived on different
islands.
c. Various species of
finches lived on just one
of the islands.
d. Identical species of
finches lived in South
America.
FIG. 10.1
a. areas with short plants
and mosses
b. areas with no plants and
sand dunes
c. areas with lots of taller
plants
d. areas with only tall trees
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Biology
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Principles of Evolution
Name: _____________________________ Class: __________________ Date: __________________
Chapter Test A, continued
_____ 7. Which theory states that
floods and earthquakes have
occurred often in Earth’s
history?
a. uniformitarianism
b. natural selection
c. catastrophism
d. artificial selection
_____ 11. Individuals that are well
adapted to their environment
will survive and produce
a. fewer mutations.
b. more offspring.
c. stronger genes.
d. better traits.
_____ 12. Natural selection results in
change overtime by acting
on traits that are
a. heritable.
b. new.
c. mutated.
d. better.
_____ 8. The hind leg bones shown
in the whale in Figure 10.2
are examples of
_____ 13. What is the study of the
distribution of organisms
around the world?
a. paleontology
b. geography
c. geology
d. biogeography
FIG. 10.2
a.
b.
c.
d.
______
homologous structures.
analogous structures.
fossil structures.
vestigial structures.
_____ 14. Fossil evidence shows that
structures considered
vestigial in living organisms
a. are not found in ancient
organisms.
b. have always been
vestigial.
c. were useful to their
ancestors.
d. do not fill gaps in the
fossil record
9. Charles Darwin found fossils
that looked like ancient
versions of living species.
From this evidence Darwin
suggested that Earth was
a. much more than 6000
years old.
b. less than 6000 years old.
c. only 6000 years old.
d. about 1000 years old.
_____ 15. Which theory ties the fields
of biology and geology
together?
_____ 10. What is the process in
which humans breed
organisms for certain traits?
a. natural selection
b. inheritance of acquired
characteristics
c. artificial selection
d. descent without
modification
a.
b.
c.
d.
evolution
uniformitarianism
catastrophism
gradualism
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Biology
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Principles of Evolution
Name: _____________________________ Class: __________________ Date: __________________
Chapter Test A, continued
Short Answer Use the diagram below to answer items 16–20. (5 credits)
FIG. 10.3
16. The forelimbs of the organisms in Figure 10.3 are examples of what type of
structures?
_______________________________________________________________
17. What are the functions of the three forelimbs in Figure 10.3?
_______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________
18. What do these structures indicate about the evolution of the three organisms?
_______________________________________________________________
19. What would be an example of a structure analogous to structure C?
_______________________________________________________________
20. How does the anatomy of the forelimbs show an evolutionary pattern?
_______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________
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Biology
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Principles of Evolution
Name: _____________________________ Class: __________________ Date: __________________
Chapter Test A, continued
Use the diagram below to answer items 21–25. (5 credits)
FIG. 10.4 EVOLUTIONARY RELATIONSHIP OF VERTEBRATES
Species
Number of amino acids that differ from those in a
human hemoglobin protein chain (total chain
length  146 amino acids)
Human
0
Rhesus monkey
8
Mouse
27
Chicken
45
Frog
67
Lamprey
125
21. Which species from Figure 10.4 has the most amino acids that are different
from those of humans?
_______________________________________________________________
22. Which species has the most amino acids in common with humans?
_______________________________________________________________
23. What does this molecular fingerprinting reveal about the frog?
_______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________
24. How does the data in Figure 10.4 indicate that humans and Rhesus monkeys
share the most recent common ancestor?
_______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________
25. Which organisms in Figure 10.4 share the most distant common ancestors?
Explain.
_______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________
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Biology
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Principles of Evolution